Over the past 20 years, considerable efforts have been made to create inexpensive reproductions of original artwork. See for example U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,958,470 and 5,904,962.
Such reproductions are often created on PVC substrates which resist tearing, but were harmful to the environment if the reproductions were discarded to landfill either due to flaws created during the manufacturing process or due to the reproduction being disposed of by a consumer. The use of polystyrene or other environmentally friendly materials is complicated by the fact that polystyrene is relatively fragile and is subject to fracturing and tearing. Accordingly, while polystyrene is more environmentally friendly, it poses additional problems during the manufacturing process.